The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-11-16
MOTHERS OF FAMOUS MEN.
"A De script!on of the Mothers of Some
Men OF World-Wi Fame.
lronl ltomon's .lrqonl.


The mothers of famous men are always
Interesting studies. Concerning many of
chose women the world knows much but of
rhe majority it is ignorant. The mother of
I,ouis Agassiz the scientist, was the wife of
N Swiss Protestant clergynen, and lived to
"a very old age. Louis was her favorite son,
and she trained him with the greatest care.
When, i'll 1851, Prof. Silliman. of Yale
College, visited her, he found her at four
score "tall, erect and dignified woman, "
with animated address and cultivated man
ners. When she was assured by her guest
that her sons adopted country loved him
and was proud of him, her strong frame
was agtated, her voice trembled with emo
ton, and the flowing tears told the story of
a mothers heart The day that Prof Sill
man left she walked long way in the rain
to bid him and his wife farewell. Present
ing them with a little bouquet of pansies,
she babe them toll her son ''her pensees were
all for him. PenSee in French means both
mains and thought. On the fiftieth birthday
of Agassiz the Saturday Club Of Boston
celebrated it with a dinner, at which Long
fellow, Holmes and Lowell read poem. In
the poem of the former alluson was made
1othe natural mother as mourning over the
fact that the great mother nature had drawn
her son from the fireside, where she wished
to keep him:
And the mother at home says "Hsrk'
For his voice listen and yearn;
1t is growing late and dark,
And my boy does not return"
Agassiz's head was bent during the read
ing of the poem, but when the allusiOn to
his mother was made, his ruddy face flushed
with restrained feeling, tears gathered i'll his
ewes, and as the last line was uttered they
dropped slowly down his cheeks, one after
another
The mother of Alphonso and Ernest Dau-
Diet, the French novelist, was an intellectual
woman. She was a constant reader, and
her children were early impressed with her
superiority over other mothers, and were
profoundly grateful to her in after life for
her careful training of their minds. The
father was rich silk weaver, and had
only an ordinary mind. Loss of for
tune soured him, and he seemed to have
little influence over his gifted sons.
But the mother was their inspiration and
delight.
The childhood of Dickens was so shad-
owed by poverty and his sensitive and i'm
sginative mind was so keenly alive to his
position that it was hardly possible that he
could draw an absolutely impartial picture of
his parents. His mother had keen apprecia-
ton Of the dron and of the pathetic, and
likewise considerable dramatic talent. She
was q comedy little woman, with handsome
From her Dickens undoubtedly inherited
his temperance and intellectual gifts. She
possessed an extraordinary sense of the lu-
dicrous, and her power of imitation was
something astonishing. Her perception was
quick and she unconscio usly notice every
thing that came under her observation In
describing ridiculous occurrences her tone
and gesture would be imimitable, while her
manner was of the quaintest Dickens de-
clared that to her he owed his first desire
for knowledge, and his earliest passion for
reading was awakened by his mother, who
taught him not only the first rudiment of
English, but also little of Latin. Poverty
saddened and darkened many years of hsr
life. and her children were early compelled
TO leave her and earn their own living, but
they all honored and loved her as she de-
served.
Leigh Hunt thus writes of his mother:
''My mother had no accomplishments but
the two best of ala love of nature and of
books DIR. Franklin offered to teach her
the guitar, but she was too bashful to be-
come his pupil She regretted this after
ward, partly, no doubt, for having so illus
trious a master Her first child who died,
was named after him. | know not whether
the anecdote is new, but have heard that
when Dr. Franklin invented the harmonica
he concealed it from his wife till the instI1u-
ment was fit to play, and then woke her
with it one night, when she took it for the
music of angels. Having been
born nine years later than the youngest of
my brothers, have no recollection of my
mothers earlier aspect. Her eyes were al
ways fine and her person ladylike; her hair
also retained its color for a long period; but
her brown complexion had been exchanged
for jaundiced one, which she retained
through life: her cheeks were sunken and
her mouth draw down with sorrow at the
corners. She retained the energy of her
character on great occasions, but her spirit
in ordinary affairs was weakened and she
looked at the hustle and discord of the pres
emit state of society with frightened aver
sion. Never shall | forget her face, as it
appeared to me coming up the cloisters,
with that weary hang Of the head on one
side and that melancholy smile. One
holiday in a severe winter, as she was talk
ing me home, she was petitioned for charity
by woman sick and ill clothed. 1t was in
Blackfriars road, | think about midway
My mother, with tears in her eyes, turned
up gateway or some other place, and,
beckoning the woman to follow, took of
her flannel petticoat and gave it to her. 1t
is supposed that "a cold which ensued fixed
the rheumatism upon her for life. Actions
like this have doubtless been often per-
Termed and do not of necessity imply any
great virtue in the performer, but they do,
If they are at peace with the rest of the
character Saints have been made for char
itiae No oraafaI.